According to This Guy, We Should All Wear Suspenders
Painter and cater-waiter Mark Diruzza entered the Pratt Institute with a nose ring and a mohawk and now wears suspenders to class at the Borough of Manhattan Community College. Can Diruzza persuade you to forgo your belt for braces? He makes a compelling argument to New York’s Amy Larocca in this week’s Video Look Book.
Mark Diruzza [Video Look Book]
The In-box
Does the Name Chef Really Work in the Kitchen Anymore?Dear Grub Street,
I’m in New York on business for a little while and will have the opportunity to try a handful of restaurants while I’m here. What are some of the top spots in the city where the chef whose name is on the door is still in the kitchen? I’ve eaten at both Lupa and Otto, but I imagine Mr. Batali’s clogs haven’t graced either kitchen in some time (though the food and service at both were excellent, especially Frank behind the bar at Otto). It’s not that I need to see a celebrity chef in person … I just want to try good food from good chefs who are still plying their trade. For example, my understanding is that Wylie Dufresne actually still works at wd-50 every day, and, as you recently mentioned in one post, Eric Ripert is always in the kitchen at Le Bernardin. Anywhere else?
Thanks,
Meet the Chef
the comics page
Exclusive Comics Excerpt: ‘Shazam: The Monster Society of Evil’Today on the Comics Page, we’re proud to present an excerpt from Shazam: The Monster Society of Evil, a rousing all-ages adventure by Jeff Smith, the creator of Bone, out this week from DC Comics.
in other news
The Internet Finally Thinks of a Comeback for Ann CoulterFor some reason, Ann Coulter’s comment that Jews should be “perfected” has really gotten the Internet going (as opposed to her comments that 9/11 widows are “self-obsessed” and “enjoying” their husbands’ deaths, or that John Edwards is a “faggot,” yadda yadda yadda). Coulter said the quote to Donny Deutsch (a Jew) on his show, The Big Idea, last week. But like you, the Internet sometimes comes up with its best responses several days after a slight is delivered. Like today’s salvo from a hacker, who broke into Coulter’s Website and put up an open letter purporting to be from the ice queen herself. “I’ve been participating in a charade for nearly eleven years, now. Quite frankly, I’m sick of it,” wrote the faux Coulter. “You have all been a part of a sick joke that I began considering shortly after first getting on the air. At first, it was quite interesting to see how people would react when I would use twisted logic and poorly masked bigotry. But eleven years is a long time to be living a fake life, and I can no longer tolerate this falsity.” It was funny because it uncannily said what most people (okay, most people we know) assume has been going on in Coulter’s head all along. Equally harsh was Maxim.com’s effort, the image you can see above. It’s a map of how Coulter herself can be “perfected.” At first we thought it wasn’t as clever (“remove swastika from heiny?”), but then we realized that when Coulter sees the instruction “remove penis or make smaller,” she’s totally going to be mad she didn’t say that about Hillary Clinton first.
Ann Coulter Proclaims Herself a Sick Joke, But Is It All a Sick Joke? [Jezebel]
Perfecting Ann Coulter [Maxim]
overnights
‘Heroes’: Hello, Daddy IssuesAfter three weeks of throat-clearing, Heroes finally remembered why we watch it last night.
‘Gossip Girl’ Star Chace Crawford Apparently Not Worried About His TruckAt the memorial service for former movie critic Joel Siegel, ABC anchor Charles Gibson noted that the Jewish Siegel sent the best Christmas cards. Gossip Girl star Chace Crawford got cozy with a “rude and nasty” Carrie Underwood at Marquee and a party at Soho Grand (not “Chance” Crawford, as reported by “Page Six”). Vanessa and Donald Trump Jr. dined at Gemma and drank at the Rose Bar in the Gramercy Park Hotel. Cindy Adams claims that members of John Edwards’s camp are “profoundly worried” about the recent allegations that Edwards strayed on his wife. David Lauren and Lauren Bush arrived via motorcycle to the Domino Bazaar Saturday.
Mediavore
Pinkberry Domination Continues Apace; Chumley’s in Trouble AgainPinkberry’s quest for world domination becomes more tangible: Its founders have raised $27.5 million in the company’s first round of venture capital. [NYT]
Related: The New Cold War: The Battle for Bleecker Street
Hear the Pinkberry Jingle, Attempt to Get it Out of Your Head
Chumley’s prospective opening date of October 1 has come and gone, possibly because of certain “surprises” the engineers have found, including asbestos and an eroding foundation. [NYP]